Month: November 2017

Studies show that in spite of heavy penalties by Law maximum drivers on the streets are without insurance. The number of uninsured drivers is growing steadily and this is a catastrophe in waiting.
It is important that drivers who have auto insurance and are covered should have substantial underinsured and uninsured motorist coverage as well. This will allow for recovery of compensation in the eventuality of a car accident.

Understanding legal terms

• Uninsured claims
If you have an uninsured rider on your insurance then you can collect compensation from your insurance against any at-fault uninsured driver accident.
This means that in the event of an accident with an at-fault uninsured driver, your insurance will pay for your damages. An uninsured vehicle could be stolen, unregistered, hit and run or driven without the owner’s permission.

• Underinsured claims
An at-fault underinsured vehicle is where the insurance amount is not enough to cover all damages relating to the accident.
How does it work?
Many states such as New York make it mandatory to include uninsured motorist coverage. You can collect on this insurance in the event of an uninsured or underinsured accident.
This essentially replaces the liability faced by an at-fault driver and covers damages including, pain and trauma, loss in wages and medical bills.
The critical evidence which is key in establishing fault at the uninsured driver will include expert witnesses, medical records, police statements, damaged vehicles, photographs, videos, records regarding vehicle positioning, speeding and road conditions.
You can help set things straight with the help of a lawyer who can take you through the ropes.
Why hire a lawyer?
In the event of an uninsured claim, you would need to prove to your insurance company about contact and damage. Insurance companies are forever denying claims and are known to make the experience harrowing and troublesome.
A lawyer can streamline the whole process for you and take care of all the paperwork. Dealing with an accident is nerve-wracking in itself without the hassle of paying bills.
With a lawyer, you put your case in safe hands. You can ensure not to have your claim denied due to some paperwork error or other factors. People under stress find it difficult and frustrating to face annoying paperwork and insurance procedures.
A lawyer will also work with you to determine the extent of damages faced. You can accurately value your damages so that you receive complete compensation.

The primary function of medical doctors is to save the lives of their patients. This is why medical students spend seven years in school studying medicine, surgery, anatomy and other relevant courses. Medical doctors also take post-graduation courses to ensure they are familiar with current trends in medical practice. With all these measures in place, it is expected that doctors will always carry out their duties effectively. However, doctors are not perfect. Sometimes, even the most well-trained and competent surgeons make mistakes. These mistakes might constitute grounds for a medical malpractice suit. Below are some cases that may lead to a medical malpractice lawsuit.

Surgery Based on Wrong Diagnosis
Many large medical facilities are understaffed and the surgeons in these places are overworked. With few doctors handling many cases, mistakes are bound to happen. For instance, a surgeon might operate on a patient due to an improper diagnosis by the primary healthcare practitioner. This is a very expensive mistake so the victim of this mistake has excellent grounds to sue the doctor as well as the hospital involved.

Criminal Negligence
When you hear the expression, “lawyers needed after bad surgery” it means the surgeon involved is likely to get into serious trouble. For instance, you had chronic pain on the lower right abdomen for months. You consulted your doctor and this expert diagnosed appendicitis and referred you to a surgeon. The surgery was carried out successfully and you were discharged by the surgeon. However, the pain you complained about got even worse after the surgery. You consulted a second doctor and this expert discovered that the surgeon had “forgotten” a bit of cotton wool in your abdomen. There are grounds for criminal negligence here and you should instruct your attorney to sue the surgeon immediately.

Operating on the Wrong Patient
This is another classic sign of a bad surgery. You were admitted to a medical facility and you are due for surgery. Another patient was admitted for a different medical condition and placed in the bed next to yours. The surgeon walks in and carries out the operation meant for the other patient on you. You wake after surgery to discover that the surgical operation meant for another patient had been carried out on you. In this situation, there is only one thing to do. Talk to your lawyer and institute legal proceedings against the doctor and the medical facility immediately.

Final Word
Doctors are supposed to be careful and diligent professionals. When they make expensive mistakes like the ones above, somebody must be made to pay.

The west coast of the United States, and California in particular, is considered a litigation-happy society. There are thousands of ambulance chasers thriving in the city. There are also many courts that entertain all manner of lawsuits that are brought before them. Personal injury cases are the most common on the west coast as most states require fault to be proven before a payout is made by insurers or the defendant. Most car accidents normally result in lawsuits in the state. While the large number of cases may burden the justice system in the region, it is great business for lawyers. The top lawyers on the west coast mainly specialize in personal injury lawsuits and drug offenses as these are the two most common types of cases west coast courts normally handle.

Finding the Top Lawyers on the West Coast

When looking for the top lawyers on the west coast, there are a number of factors that you need to consider. First, you need to make a list of the most experienced lawyers in the field you are interested in. For instance, if you are facing a medical malpractice lawsuit from your former patient, or their relative, you should hire a personal injury lawyer with extensive experience litigating medical malpractice lawsuits. The most experienced lawyers in this field should be given priority consideration as they know all the related case law, legal statutes, procedural law and state law governing these lawsuits. They also know how best to approach these cases to ensure the client gets the best outcomes possible.

The success rate of an attorney with similar types of cases should also be considered. If a lawyer has won less than half of all the cases they have handled, you should ignore them because winning will be a matter of chance when you hire them. You want to be represented by a lawyer whose success rate is almost 100%.

The rates charged by a lawyer should be checked before you make a decision. The top lawyers on the west coast normally have a competitive fee structure for different types of cases, so you should obtain quotes and compare them before making a decision.

Not every legal matter out there does require the use of an attorney. However, it is always advised to have a legal pro on hand just in case, because you never know if you need one to represent you or not. In a number of cases, it is better to be safe than sorry, and if you are facing a charge or some other of form of legal issue. It does make perfect sense to have a lawyer available to you. What are 10 reasons t hire a lawyer for you. Read on to find out. It’s to your advantage.

Two reasons that you usually don’t need an attorney are is when you are fighting a speeding ticket or are going to small claims court to resolve whatever you have to handle personally. Nonetheless, there will times in your life or in the life of your loved ones, when you will require the services of a legal eagle for more complex problems. Some of these are as follows. They are:

1. The law can be complicated – If you aren’t a lawyer, or don’t know squat about the law, you have no right trying to act like one. A solid case requires an attorney who is properly trained and has the right experience to see it through adequately.

2. If you don’t have a qualified lawyer – If you don’t have a qualified lawyer, it can end up costing you far more in the end, and that far more may result in more jail time and lots more that you don’t want on purpose.

3. Lawyers know how to challenge and even suppress evidence – If you don’t hire an attorney, you may never even know if an important piece of evidence used against you wasn’t obtained properly, or if a witness statement does contradict an earlier statement that was made.

4. Attorneys know how to properly go about filing court documents and taking care of other legal procedures – Lawyers are educated in every aspect of how to handle the law and court cases. It’s as simple as that.

5. You don’t know any of the expert witnesses or private detectives -Attorneys have an extended network of other professionals that they deal with on a regular basis. Lawyers depend on these other professionals to help out their client’s cases. Non-attorneys will not know contacts such as these are.

6.You may not know how to plead or even what a plead is – An attorney who thoroughly knows the law, does know which way to go, when it comes to his or her client pleading. They are best situated to explain all of the options open to you and which would be the best course for you to take personally.

7.Attorneys know how to avoid creating more problems – Those who believe they don’t need an attorney for themselves may end up causing more trouble for themselves at the end of the day. If problems should arise, attorneys know how to fix them right away, and that is that.

8.A good attorney knows how to strike up a good deal or plea bargain – Non-attorneys will not know how to do this. It is only highly qualified lawyers that can do this and they are good at doing it.

9. You want to have legal representation and not the other party just having it – You don’t want to have a non-attorney try to square off up against your legal opposition who has a qualified attorney. It just never will work to your advantage from a legal aspect.

10. Lawyers do usually have a free consultation – There is no harm with meeting an attorney face to face and talking with him or her. If anything, it doesn’t cost anything for a face to face meeting, as most attorneys don’t charge for this service that is free of charge.

These are just 10 reasons to hire a lawyer for yourself There are lots more as a rule. However, these are 10 reasons to hire a lawyer, which do indeed make sense as to why you should consider doing it.

Winning a personal injury lawsuit depends greatly on your legal representation. These 5 tips on picking a personal injury lawyer will help you hire the right lawyer.

1. Experience, skill and practical knowledge goes a long way
If you want to win your case then you need someone who has experience, the right skill sets, and practical know-how. The ground reality is very different from books on shelves so do not get enamored by mesmerizing offices in luxurious blocks. Hire an attorney who has the right credentials and has a couple of years under his belt.

2. Choose a practice which focuses on personal injury
Personal injury as a domain has many quirks to it. Choose an attorney who practices personal injury specifically. Make sure that they have people who specialize in dealing with this. Negotiation is a big part of these lawsuits and almost 95% get settled before trial. You want someone who can accurately place a compensation value to your damages.

3. Do your research with the reputation
A good reputation is an asset in every industry. You do not want a lawyer who has been thrown out of the court for bad behavior. If a lawyer has a decent reputation in the industry then he would definitely be on good terms with insurance companies and other lawyers. This goes a long way in settling your case quickly and fairly.

4. Clients and objectivity are paramount
If possible take a look at his case history and current clients. Make sure your lawyer has enough time to devote to your lawsuit. There are chances that you might get stuck with a lawyer who does not get you the compensation you deserve in order to wrap up a case quickly. Ensure that your lawyer always has an objective outlook on your case.

5. Attorney behavior and other personal traits
When you hire a lawyer, he represents you and speaks on your behalf. He does not need to be your friend but you would have to be confident in him. Don’t overlook personality traits such as returning a call, approachability, ease in speaking with etc.

A personal injury lawsuit can be very straightforward, quick and get you the compensation you deserve with the right lawyer.